Neighborhood Returns To Normal

April 24, 2000|By STELLA M. CHM-AVEZ Staff Writer and Pedro Ruz Gutierrez of the Miami Bureau contributed to this report.

MIAMI — Uncertainty. Despair. Emptiness.

That was how many in Little Havana described their feelings on Easter, the day after federal agents took the community's beloved little boy.

"There's a lot of confusion," said Mary Rodriguez, who lives across the street from the GonzM-alez family home, where EliM-an GonzM-alez, 6, lived for the past five months. "They don't know what to do. They don't know where to go. Everybody's sitting around trying to figure out what to do next."

About 150 people milled outside the home on Sunday. Some talked about a citywide protest planned for Tuesday. A few broke into heated arguments. Others stood quietly and stared at the now-famous residence, still decorated with signs, flowers and flags.

Northwest Second Street was open to traffic once again as police cleared the road and ordered everyone to the sidewalk. Gone were the white canopies and tents occupied by the media. A few video and telephone cables remained strewn on the sidewalks.

For the first time in months, some residents felt they were regaining their privacy and now could venture out for groceries or invite friends for dinner.

Once the EliM-an saga began, Rodriguez said, she and her husband had to put plans to remodel their home on hold. It took three weeks for workers to install an alarm system -- "one day's worth of work," she said. The constant commotion resulted in several sleepless nights. Relatives, including her mother, had a difficult time visiting.

Still, Rodriguez said she didn't mind that her neighborhood became the center of worldwide attention. Throughout the ordeal, she kept her home open to journalists, offering them water and letting them use her bathroom.

"My contribution was to assist people," Rodriguez said. "It was my contribution to the cause."

In the afternoon heat, passions flared when two young women carried signs supporting Attorney General Janet Reno. Melanie Luke, 26, said she and a friend wanted to exercise their freedom of expression by writing "We Support Reno" in Spanish.

"Not here! Not here!" protesters shouted. One man tried to hit one of the women and pulled her hair as she was escorted away by security guards.

"This is America. It's free speech," Luke shouted to reporters.

Visitors making their first trip to the GonzM-alez home on Sunday said they had wanted to lend support but decided to wait for a calmer day.

"It's like what happens where there's a bad car accident. Everybody wants to go by and see," said Ricardo GonzM-alez, 26. "It looks like a memorial."

GonzM-alez and other observers expressed disbelief that federal agents would remove the child on Easter weekend.

Belkis Molina called the situation "ironic" and compared U.S. government officials to Pontius Pilate, who ordered Jesus' crucifixion.

"Isn't that something?" Molina asked. "It's the same story but the characters are different."

Pedro Ruz Gutierrez of the Miami Bureau contributed to this report.

Stella M. ChM-avez can be reached at schavez@sun-sentinel.com or 561-243-6602.